Ayurveda emphasizes
preventative and healing therapies along with various methods of
purification and rejuvenation. Ayurveda is more than a mere healing
system, it is a science and an art of appropriate living which helps
to achieve longevity. It can guide every individual in the proper
choice of diet, living habits and exercise to restore balance in the
body, mind and consciousness, thus preventing disease from gaining a
foothold in the system.

According to Ayurveda,
every human being is a unique phenomenon (manifested through the five
basic elements - ether, air, fire, water and earth) of cosmic
consciousness. Vata (ether plus air), pitta (fire plus water) and
kapha (water plus earth) are called the tridosha, meaning the three
humors or the three organizations of the body, which are also derived
from consciousness. Every individual psycho-somatic temperament or
constitution is determined by these three doshas at the time of
fertilization. When the embryo is formed the constitution is
determined. There are seven basic constitutions according to Ayurveda:
vata, pitta, kapha, vata-pitta, pitta-kapha, kapha-vata and
vata-pitta-kapha. Every individual constitution has its own unique
balance of V-P-K according to its own nature. The balance of V-P-K is
the natural order, thus when this doshic balance is disturbed, it
creates imbalance, which is disorder. Health is order; disease is
disorder. Within the body there is a constant interaction between
order and disorder, thus once one understands the nature and structure
of disorder, one can re-establish order. Ayurveda believes that order
lies within disorder.

Order is the state of
health, as defined by Ayurveda, which exists when the digestive fire (agni)
is in a balanced condition; the bodily humors (vata, pitta and kapha)
are in equilibrium, the three waste products (urine, feces and sweat)
are produced and eliminated normally, the seven bodily tissues (rasa,
rakta, mamsa, meda, asthi, majja and shukra) are functioning normally,
and the mind, senses and consciousness are working harmoniously
together. When the balance of these systems is disturbed the disease
(disorder) process begins.

The internal environment
is governed by V-P-K, which is constantly reacting to the external
environment. The wrong diet, habits, lifestyle, incompatible food
combinations (e.g. milk and fish, melons and grain, yogurt and meat or
cooked honey etc.), seasonal changes, repressed emotions and stress
factors can all act either together or separately to change the
balance of V-P-K. According to the nature of the cause, either vata,
pitta or kapha undergo aggravation or derangement which affects the
agni (gastric fire), and produces ama (toxins). This ama enters the
blood stream and is circulated throughout the body, clogging the
channels. Retention of toxins in the blood results in toxemia. This
accumulated toxicity, once well established, will slowly affect prana
(vital life energy), ojas (immunity), and tejas (cell metabolic energy)
and result in disease. This can be nature's effort at eliminating the
toxicity from the body. Every so-called disease is a crisis of ama
toxicity. Ama is the basic internal cause of all disease, due to the
aggravated doshas.

Herein lies the
key to the prevention of disease: help the body eliminate the toxins.
To stop the further production of ama Ayurvedic literature suggests
putting the person on a proper diet with appropriate lifestyle, habits
and exercise, and administering a proper cleansing program such as
panchakarma.

Panchakarma is a very
special Ayurvedic operation requiring proper guidance from a highly
trained and skillful Ayurvedic practitioner. This should not be
undertaken just from information in this article. One should consult
with an Ayurvedic physician, not just someone with a modest amount of
training. Panchakarma is done individually for each person with their
specific constitution and specific disorder in mind, thus it requires
close observation and supervision.